9th Feb 2015 07:37
LONDON (Alliance News) - Randgold Resources Ltd Monday said pretax profit fell in 2014 on weaker gold prices but it raised its final dividend by 20% and said it is going to continue to commit to "significant expenditure" in 2015.
Gold production in the fourth quarter ended December 31 totalled 287,048 ounces compared to 299,320 ounces in the third quarter. Production fell at the Loulo-Gounkoto complex in Mali and Tongon in the Ivory Coast, offset by an increase in production at both Kibali in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Morila in Mali.
Revenue in the quarter totalled USD226.3 million, down quarter-on-quarter and from a year earlier, when it generated USD291.8 million. Pretax profit in the quarter reached USD73.3 million, significantly down from 2013 when it reported a USD129.7 million in the fourth quarter.
Profit for the period was hurt by lower gold sales, offset by an increase in profits from joint ventures and other income, as well as lower exploration and corporate costs, said Randgold.
For the fourth quarter, the company reported USD39.9 million in depreciation and amortization costs, which was in line with guidance but 113% higher than a year earlier, due to the increase in assets brought into use at the Loulo-Gounkoto complex and at Tongon and revisions to the life of mine of production depreciation estimates in the period, it said.
Depreciation and amortisation for the year ended December 31, totalled USD146.8 million and is mainly attributable to the increased assets brought into use at the Loulo-Gounkoto complex and at Tongon.
For the year ended December 31, the company reported revenue of USD1.08 billion, down from USD1.13 billion in 2013, resulting in a pretax profit of USD353 million, also down from USD402.5 million a year earlier. Pretax profit for the year fell due to lower commodity prices, Randgold said.
At the end of 2014, the company reported a cash balance of USD82.8 million.
The board has proposed a final dividend of USD0.6 per share, a 20% increase on the prior year of USD0.5 per share.
The company will continue to commit significant expenditure to exploration, with corporate and exploration expenses of approximately USD60 million anticipated in 2015. Total group capital expenditure, including the company's attributable share of joint ventures, is expected to be approximately USD330 million.
"Our long standing goal of reaching an annual production of 1.2 million ounces in 2015 is now comfortably within reach, and we are already looking beyond that to our next big step forward," said Chief Executive Mark Bristow.
By Joshua Warner; [email protected]; @JoshAlliance
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